Chapter 3 – The One with Stories

Volume 3: Rising Winds and Clouds

"Fine, big brother it is. Such a grown man, yet still pretending to be young!"

Zheng Ye muttered under his breath, but it couldn't escape Wen Yu's enhanced hearing.

Wen Yu merely gave a self-deprecating smile in response.

Truth be told, living like a savage in the Mountain Forest did make one look quite "old."

Shaking his head helplessly, Wen Yu began pulling Level 2 Magic Crystals from his Spatial Ring one after another, stuffing them into the Little Soul Beast's mouth.

These were merely daily snacks for the Little Soul Beast now.

Though the Level 4 Little Soul Beast's appearance hadn't changed, its capabilities had…

"Master, I want more!"

A clear, crisp voice rang out in Wen Yu's mind.

This was the Soul Beast's mental fluctuation.

Upon reaching Level 4, the Little Soul Beast had become capable of clearly projecting its consciousness.

Under the power of the contract, the Little Soul Beast could not only communicate with Wen Yu but also link the consciousness of all his Soul Pets!

"Boss, I want some too!"

One-Eye flicked his pink tongue across his face, licking away the bloodstains. He trotted up to Wen Yu, sat down respectfully, and looked at him with eyes full of longing.

"Boss, don't forget me!"

And then there was Star. 

After ten days of "training," Star's speech had become much more fluent. Furthermore…

As a Divine Beast Species, reaching Level 4 had brought about even more miraculous changes.

Looking at the Little Soul Beast on his shoulder and the longing gazes of the little dog and the Little Dragon before him, Wen Yu suddenly had a premonition of how miserable his future life would be.

"They're all my subordinates, all my family. I can't leave anyone out!"

Wen Yu gritted his teeth, enduring the sting as he stuffed two Level 3 Magic Crystals into the mouths of One-Eye and Star respectively.

The crunching sounds echoed like heavy hammers striking Wen Yu's heart.

Those were Level 3 Magic Crystals! Level 3! Just eaten like that!

The most critical part was…

"Boss, we want more!!!"

…

"I'm really out!"

Wen Yu clutched his Spatial Ring with trembling hands, speaking helplessly to the three little beasts.

"Hmph, didn't you promise we could eat our fill once we came out? So stingy!"

Star gave Wen Yu a "fierce" look of disdain with his small eyes, then turned around, swaying his tail-which was half as long as his body-and went back to enjoying the fresh flesh and blood.

One-Eye was also happy to see Wen Yu deflated and immediately ran over with Star.

Wen Yu couldn't help but rub his forehead.

To these Soul Pets, Magic Crystals were an extremely delicious food.

However, just like humans, you can fill your stomach with gourmet meat or with plain buns and pickles. Unless the Magic Crystal was of the same level as themselves, eating lower-level crystals provided no special benefits.

Well, that wasn't entirely true; at the very least, it satisfied their cravings.

Seeing the three Soul Pets constantly criticizing him in his mind, Wen Yu gritted his teeth and pulled out two more Level 3 Magic Crystals.

Then, in an instant, before Wen Yu could even react, the silhouettes of the dog and the dragon flashed by at extreme speed!

After the black and grey shadows blurred together, the Magic Crystals in his hand had vanished.

"Waaaah, Master, you don't love me anymore! They both got one!!! Waaaah…"

Before Wen Yu could process what happened, the Little Soul Beast's soul fluctuation reached him.

"You get one too!"

Wen Yu let out a long, deep breath.

…

Everyone else watched Wen Yu with dropped jaws. Clearly, they were in disbelief at the sheer extravagance Wen Yu displayed while feeding his Soul Pets.

Wen Yu quickly masked his heartache and spoke to Zheng Ye, who was standing beside him.

"You shouldn't be looking at me right now. You should be talking to me about the intelligence regarding Mudanjiang City!"

Zheng Ye looked at Wen Yu, then at One-Eye and Star. Suddenly, a bright light flashed in his eyes.

"Big brother, those two are amazing! They were so fast just now, I couldn't even see them clearly!"

"Are they both your pets?"

With Zheng Ye's question, the entire scene suddenly became lively.

"Yeah, yeah! Look at that black Little One. It looks just like the dragons from the games I used to play!"

"Look at the two of them. They must be incredibly strong. They've already eaten half a wild boar, but their bellies haven't changed at all!"

"Wow! Do they have dimensional stomachs or something?"

"And that ball on the uncle's shoulder-it can move!"

"And they've eaten so many Magic Crystals. Their food is so high-grade! I want some too!"

… 

A chorus of chaotic voices erupted from the surrounding children.

The Apocalypse had made these children precocious, but it had not extinguished their childhood innocence.

The noisy surroundings, combined with the three Soul Pets in his head constantly discussing how to eat Magic Crystals to make them taste better, made Wen Yu's head feel like it was about to explode.

"Shh, shh, shh, shh…"

Wen Yu raised his index finger to his lips, making a gesture to the group of children and his Soul Pets.

Then, once everything was quiet, Wen Yu looked at Zheng Ye seriously and spoke.

"Let's talk business!"

… 

As night fell, the children who had been sitting around had already headed underground to rest early.

Only Wen Yu and Zhang Xiao remained sitting by the fire, continuously adding wood to provide a flicker of light in the silent night.

"By the way, um, Lord, were you from Mudanjiang City before?"

Wen Yu's movements paused slightly, and he gave a slow nod.

"Also, just call me Wen Yu."

Hearing Wen Yu's words, Zhang Xiao still felt a bit constrained. He hesitated for a long while before nodding at Wen Yu.

"Then, Wen Yu, what did you come back for this time?"

Looking at Zhang Xiao's eyes, Wen Yu immediately understood that this wasn't an interrogation; it was merely curiosity.

Wen Yu fell silent for a moment, as if thinking, or perhaps reminiscing.

"That's right… why did I come back?"

There was a hint of confusion and a faint sigh in his voice.

"Boss, Simba! Simba! I want to eat him!"

One-Eye, who was lying nearby on night watch, suddenly barked twice with ferocity. However, in his miniature state, that sound couldn't be considered fierce at all.

Hearing One-Eye's reminder, Wen Yu remained silent for a moment before slowly shaking his head.

"No, at least, not entirely…"

Then, another silence followed.

"To go home."

After a long while, Wen Yu spoke those few words, his tone very certain.

"This place is my home. I simply wanted to come home."

Seeing Wen Yu's serious and solemn expression, Zhang Xiao nodded and added another piece of wood to the fire.

"Home is important."

At Zhang Xiao's words, Wen Yu smiled.

"Yes, home is very important."

The flickering firelight illuminated Wen Yu's face, and Zhang Xiao saw the depth in Wen Yu's eyes.

This was a man with a story.